


one life, one encounter

by bastigod



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Asexual Sakusa, Japanese Mythology & Folklore, M/M, SakuAtsu Week, Sakukita friendship, unspecified time period
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-09
Updated: 2020-04-09
Packaged: 2021-03-01 06:20:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23466772
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bastigod/pseuds/bastigod
Summary: It is a sin to tell a lie to your fellow man, but it is a greater sin to lie to yourself.Happy SakuAtsu Week!Prompt: Trace/Skin
Relationships: Miya Atsumu/Sakusa Kiyoomi
Comments: 31
Kudos: 398
Collections: SakuAtsu Week 2020





	one life, one encounter

**Author's Note:**

  * Translation into Русский available: [одна жизнь, одна встреча](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27796750) by [жёлтая сунарина (librevers)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/librevers/pseuds/%D0%B6%D1%91%D0%BB%D1%82%D0%B0%D1%8F%20%D1%81%D1%83%D0%BD%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BD%D0%B0)



“Omi-san!”

Sakusa jolted up from a nap he didn’t recall taking, finding himself face to face with a large black crow. The sun was hanging dangerously low in the sky and cast a golden haze over the courtyard. An early spring chill kissed at his cheeks, and he was grateful he’d remembered to pull on his hanten before sitting on the veranda. “Hinata? What have you brought for me?”

Hinata rustled his shiny feathers as he thrust out a single foot. A rolled up bundle was tied to his ankle with burgundy thread. “Message!”

“Ah, from Kita-san.” Sakusa untied the thread, careful not to touch the scaly skin of the crow’s foot. Who knows where he’s been? As he attempted to unroll the bundle, Hinata squawked indignantly. He glanced up to see the crow hopping like an eager dog. “Right.”

“Treat!” The crow nearly shrieked as Sakusa walked into the house.

“Yes, I heard you the first time.” He kept a few hard-boiled eggs in the ice box at all times, just in case one of the neighborhood animals came by. Hinata would chew on them with tiny but quick bites. Bokuto, a massive horned owl, would crush them in his talons first. Komori, a slippery weasel, swallowed them whole to Sakusa’s constant bafflement. 

As the crow nibbled happily on his snack, shell and all, Sakusa kneeled back down at the low table. With a simple pull of thread, the bundle unrolled, revealing two sheets of paper.

One was a letter, written in Kita-san’s flawless handwriting. It was always so perfectly spaced and even that Sakusa sometimes wondered if he’d made his own printing press. Sakusa set it aside for now. He was pleased to hear from his friend, his only friend, but the other sheet was more important. 

It was a piece of washi paper, the edges hand-painted with swirling golden designs and animal motifs. In the center was some of Kita’s signature calligraphy. Sakusa traced his finger over the brush stroked characters. _一 期 一 会. One life, one encounter._

Though Kita always sent a letter, his true message was always the calligraphy.

Sakusa felt the corners of his mouth twitch into a tiny smile as he gently set the calligraphy aside and reached for Kita’s letter.

_My dearest friend, Sakusa,_

_I thank you dearly for your gift and your well wishes. I offered half of the bottle to Inari and shared the rest with my grandmother. We have never had sake from Kanto before, I enjoyed how dry and light the brew was. I was not fond of the flavor profile, however. I dare say our Hyogo sake is superior. Still, I pray Inari enjoys it as much as I did. May they bring my grandmother strength._

_Regarding your peculiar condition, I am afraid I have not heard of anyone else like you in our modern times. Merely in ancient stories and fairy tales. Please trust that I believe you and I will research more. I will pass on any information I discover._

_I hope to see you at the Fox’s Wedding in the fall, but do remember you always have a place at my table._

_May Inari protect you._

_Yours,_

_Kita Shinsuke_

Sakusa carefully rolled the letter back up, retying the burgundy thread. When they first began exchanging letters, Kita had asked him to burn every single one. Not out of secrecy, though Sakusa didn’t quite understand the real reason why. 

Frankly, Sakusa didn’t understand many things about Kita. He was an enigma, simple but complex, cold but warm, confusing but clear. Though he was only a year older than Sakusa, it seemed like he possessed the secrets of the universe behind those unwavering eyes. Sometimes, Sakusa wondered if Kita was even a real person. Maybe, he was Inari themself, gallivanting amongst the humans out of sheer immortal boredom.

_I am afraid I have not heard of anyone else like you,_ he’d written. Kita had no reason to lie, so he rarely did. Still, Sakusa struggled to believe Kita wasn’t secretly beholden with magic in his own way.

“Omi-san!” Hinata’s squawk brought him out of his thoughts.

“Yes?” He set the rolled up paper gently on the table next to the calligraphy page.

“Go?” Hinata stretched out his wings, primary feathers shivering. 

“Go ahead.”

Sakusa watched the crow until he was just an inky black stain on the pink horizon.

  
  


* * *

  
  


Night had fully settled on the Itachiyama complex before Sakusa decided it was time to head inside. “I suppose I’ll leave the table out, it shouldn’t rain.” He thought out loud, more of a mumble than a full-fledged sentence. 

As he lifted his porcelain teapot, a flash of movement stole his attention. “Hello?”

The locals never came to the shrine compound after sunset, and they certainly never came close to his personal home within. Perhaps it was Komori trying to frighten him on purpose. Perhaps it was a rabbit he’d never encountered. Perhaps, though, it was an intruder, human and armed.

Sakusa desperately wished he was clutching one of his kyudo bows and not a delicate teapot. He took a cautionary step back, his heart threatening to beat out of his chest.

He found minor comfort in the fact that if he were to die, he would die in his own clean home.

However, Sakusa did not die.

Instead of a sword bearing murderer, the hedgerows sheltered a red fox. 

“Oh.” He managed to exhale, expelling the anxiety from his body. He lowered his teapot wielding arm, returning it to the table. “I’ve never seen you before.”

The fox approached, black paws stepping gently through the garden.

“What is your name?”

It stopped, brown eyes narrowing. Sakusa knelt back down, hoping to make his large silhouette a little less intimidating in the low light.

“You don’t need to be afraid of me.” There were plenty of animals he’d encountered in his life that were wary of him, that needed reassurance. As Kita-san said, animals rarely, if ever, encountered humans who understood them. But once they were comfortable, they treated him better than most humans did.

The fox simply smiled, eyes closing into cheerful arches, before it turned tail and bolted back into the hedgerow.

  
  


* * *

  
  


Darkness settled over the shrine dojo, flickering lanterns the only source of light. Sakusa notched another arrow and pulled his elbow back. There was a rustle in the bushes he opted to ignore, steadying his breathing.

He released the arrow, a sharp note ringing out, bow spinning in his hand, a thunk as it embedded itself into the target. His eyes swept to the bushes to see the fox watching him.

"You're back." He lowered the bow. 

The fox padded through the short grass of the range and hopped onto the wood edge of the dojo ledge. Sakusa returned his kyudo equipment to the rack and gently bowed, thanking them for their service.

"Bold." He said as he watched the fox curl up comfortably. “I washed these floors earlier, I hope your paws are clean.”

The fox tilted its head, averting its gaze.

“Guess that’s a no on the clean paws, then.” Sakusa kneeled down next to it. He sighed. “You can talk to me, but I understand why you don’t.”

The fox stared at him with a steady amber gaze. Sakusa had spoken to the crows and the owls and the cats and many others. He’d learned their body language and could understand them even when they did not respond verbally to him. But this was his first fox, its expressions were foreign and unreadable.

“If it brings you any ease, I was given this gift as a baby…” Sakusa shifted his position, so he could pull his knees to his chest. “Being able to understand animals like you. It isn’t something I sold my soul to a demon for.”

The fox lowered its head, tucking its nose under the tip of its fluffy tail.

“We are suspicious, afraid, of the uncertain, of the strange. The people in this town are scared of me, too. I suppose I’m used to this by now.”

Moonlight streamed through the branches of the ginkgo tree, illuminating the fox’s fur. Its eyes had closed and its breath steadied.

“Still,” Sakusa pushed himself up, careful not to let the bottom of his hakama brush against his companion. “It would be nice to have another friend.”

His gaze drifted from the fox to the targets across the range. He would have to come by after his morning prayers to extract the arrows. But now, he dared not make any more noise than necessary, to avoid disturbing the sleeping fox. Sakusa slipped on his sandals at the dojo door and followed the cobblestone path back to his personal quarters.

  
  


* * *

  
  


_石の上にも三年,_ Kita's calligraphy was flanked by pink plum blossoms with gold leaf detailing. 'Follow your course to its end.' Sakusa brought his hands together and pressed them to his face in silent thanks. 

_My wonderful friend, Sakusa,_

_I was very grateful to hear from you again so soon. Your crow friend eases the trouble of distance. I do wish I could understand him like you do, I am sure he contains many stories._

Sakusa smiled to himself. Hinata never spoke more than a few words at a time, just short and bright exclamations. But he opted not to tell Kita this, to preserve his friend's fantasy.

_It is intriguing to hear you have been visited by a fox. I may be a priest of Inari, but I am afraid I am no vulpine biologist._

_However, I do often see foxes of my own here at my shrine. One evening, a patron left a plate of tofu for Inari, but it was readily stolen by a grey furred fox. I've left out more food for them since and found they very much prefer tofu and surprisingly enough, pickled plums._

_It seems as if your new friend is still wary of you, despite its boldness. Feeding it may be the catalyst it needs to speak with you._

_Regarding your inquiry of my grandmother, she has recovered from her illness and is regaining her strength quickly. I must thank you again for the sake, Inari must have appreciated it greatly._

_Please come visit soon._

_As always, may Inari protect you._

_Yours,_

_Kita Shinsuke_

Sakusa carefully rerolled the letter and tossed it into the oven, the paper quickly devoured by the burning coals. 

  
  


* * *

  
  


A clatter outside woke Sakusa from his slumber.

“What have you done?” He asked, dryly, taking in the sight of the pickling brine-drenched fox. The bowl he’d left outside was upturned, the plums scattered around the veranda, and a puddle soaked into the wood. Sakusa sighed. “I just mopped yesterday.”

The fox whined, a sharp high-pitched sound that pricked at Sakusa’s eardrums.

“Don’t give me that.” Sakusa scolded, uprighting the bowl. He pulled the hems of his pajama pants up off the floor, cuffing them several times. He silently prayed there was still enough water in the well to mop again. “You’re cleaning up the plums, though.”

“Thanks~!” The voice startled Sakusa. His foot slid on the plum brine and nearly sent him careening to the floor. The fox swished its soggy tail, hungrily picking at the fruit.

“Y...you spoke.”

Sharp canines bit into a shriveled plum, pink juice squirting onto the already wet wood. “Yeah! Thought ya could ‘nderstand us ‘n’ all?”

Sakusa exhaled, expelling air from deep in his diaphragm. “This is the…” He counted off on his fingers. “Sixth day you’ve visited me.”

“So what?” The fox flashed a toothy grin. “‘M talkin’ now, ain’t I?”

“What’s your name?”

“You first.”

Sakusa sat down on a dry section of the veranda, letting his feet dangle over the edge. “Omi.”

“Jus’ Omi?” The fox’s eyes narrowed.

“That’s the only name you need to know me by.” Sakusa leaned back on his hands. He never told any of the animals his full name. There’s no way of knowing who they might share that information with. 

“Ya can call me Tsumu.” The fox licked his lips, showing off his sharp canines. “Tha’s the only name ya need to know me by.”

_Cheeky._

“Pleasure. I’ll leave more plums out for you, but you’re eating them in the courtyard next time.”

Tsumu whined again. “Where’s tha fun in that?”

“You either eat them cleanly, or not at all.”

The fox scrunched up his nose, sniffing loudly. “Fine.” After slurping down the final plum, Tsumu skittered off into the hedgerow, tail splattering droplets of brine everywhere.

“Pain in the ass.” Sakusa grumbled.

  
  


* * *

  
  


Sakusa mindlessly wiped the sweat off his brow with his bare forearm. “Ah, shit.” He mumbled staring at the red paint smeared across his skin. “Well, I need to bathe anyway. What’s a little extra paint?” He sighed to himself, not fully believing his own words.

He shielded his eyes with his hand as he looked up from his work. The sun boiled hot and hardly a single cloud drifted across the sky. Thankfully, there would be no rain to ruin the fresh paint he applied to the torii, but that also meant there would be no relief from the heat. He feared he’d wake up tomorrow morning to find a burn on his skin the same shade as the gate behind him.

A pair of ladies dressed in loose yukatas and huddled under an umbrella passed him, their sandals clacking against the stone walkway. Sakusa didn’t miss the way they averted their eyes away from him and whispered.

“Say, Omi-kun…” Sakusa flinched at the sound. He turned to see Tsumu sitting at the base of the shrine’s Raijin statue, his tail curled around one of the kami’s stone feet.

“Tsumu.”

“Why do they treat ya like that? Is it ‘cause ya got paint on yer face?”

“Do you really need to ask?” 

“Well, yeah, ya seem alright.”

“You’re a fox.”

“So?”

“You don’t know what humans are like, what they expect out of you.”

Tsumu’s mouth curved into a frown. “And what do they expect out of _you_?”

“A prim, proper, sociable young man.” Sakusa ran a thick brushstroke of paint over a peeling section of the gate. “One without any magical abilities, even magic as mundane as mine. One willing to be a proper beacon of the community as a priest, not just a glorified shrine keeper. One they can proudly marry their daughters too.”

“Marry you?”

Sakusa looked up the steps beyond the gate that led up to the Itachiyama compound. “I own this shrine. As much as a human can own a shrine, I suppose. Other boys in this town work in the steel mill or the fields or have gone off to fight the government’s wars. The life of a shrine wife would be a comfortable one.”

“D’ya want a wife?”

“No.” Sakusa wanted to leave it at that, but he felt amber eyes boring into the back of his skull. “There are things that wives expect out of their marriage. Such as children or…” He hesitated, searching for the words as he wiped a rag over his sweaty chest. “I am not interested in people in that way.”

“In what way?”

“You’re an animal, figure it out.”

Tsumu laughed. “Prickly.”

  
  


* * *

  
  


“Tsumu, why are you here anyway?” 

The two of them had gathered in the front hall of Sakusa’s house. He kneeled, clutching a paintbrush in one hand and pressing a segment of the half-finished koinobori firmly against the floor with the other. Tsumu, annoyed that he wasn’t allowed to freely walk around, was curled up on the top of a bookcase. 

The fox perked up from his perch, tilting his head in confusion. “Wha’? Ya got a problem with my bein’ here?”

Sakusa wiped the brush on a rag and set it down. “Don’t you have, I don’t know, animal things to do?”

“Animal things?” The fox laughed. 

“Like hunting for your own damn food?”

“Aww, Omi-kun.” He swished his tail. “Why would I do that when ya do it for me?”

Sakusa double-checked he didn’t have paint on his hands before burying his face in them. He’d learned his lesson from the torii painting incident earlier this month. “Oh, kami-sama, what have I done? I’ve domesticated him.”

“Pfft, don’ be so dramatic. I can still take care of m’self. I jus’ like bein’ around ya. Yer fun to talk to.”

Sakusa raised his head, looking at Tsumu. “You really mean that?”

“‘Course I do.”

He returned his face to his hands to conceal the smile growing across his cheeks. He thought of the other animals he encountered regularly. They were friendly and amiable to him. Brought him gifts and messages in exchange for snacks. But none of them showed much interest in lingering, in being his friend. Not like Tsumu did. 

“Thank you, Tsumu.” Sakusa said quietly.

“Not sure why yer thankin’ me, but yer welcome!”

“It’s just… nice to have another friend.” 

Tsumu jumped down from his perch, black paws thumping against the tatami floor. He approached Sakusa slowly, taking a seat next to his kneeling form.

“Tsumu?” Sakusa raised his head out of his hands. “Can I…?” 

The fox nodded and Sakusa reached. Fingers buried into the reddish-orange fur of Tsumu’s ruff. With all the mud and puddles and plum brine he saw the fox drenched in, he was surprised to feel how soft and fluffy his coat was. His hand drifted to his head, tracing a finger around an ear. Tsumu smiled, eyes crinkling into crescent moons.

“Thank you.” Sakusa said, quietly. 

With one last ruffle of the fox’s fur, Sakusa returned to painting scales on the koinobori. As much as he wanted to let the fox curl in his lap and laze the day away, there were four more banners to paint before Children's Day. 

  
  


* * *

  
  


On an overcast June afternoon, a familiar voice rang out from the shrine courtyard.

“Sakusa-kun!”

“Eh?” Sakusa looked up from the silvergrass reeds he was twining together to see a silver-haired man standing before him. Tsumu’s ears twitched, brushing against the fabric of Sakusa’s yukata. “Kita-san?”

“Hello.”

Sakusa scrambled to his feet and quickly bowed. Tsumu whined indignantly, annoyed he lost his pillow.

“Now, there’s no need for that.” Kita said with a soft smile. “We’re all friends here.”

“Here, let me help you with your things.” The priest’s bag was surprisingly heavy, Sakusa tried to hide the fact that it strained the muscles of his arms. Though he wondered why he bothered, Kita saw everything.

“This must be Tsumu.” Kita said, his serene gaze swept over the fox walking alongside them.

“Yes.” Sakusa’s voice strained under the effort. “He’s taken a liking to me for some reason.”

Kita laughed softly. “This may come as a surprise, Sakusa-kun, but you are better company than you think you are.”

Tsumu let out a throaty sound.

“What did he say?” Kita asked with a smile. “Does he agree with me?”

Tsumu tilted his head upwards, focusing those amber eyes on Kita. “He didn’t say anything.” Sakusa said.

Sakusa slid open the front door of his home and ushered Kita and Tsumu inside. Kita paused in the genkan to remove his sandals, but the fox immediately skittered inside and disappeared into the depths. “Ah, I wonder what got him so upset.”

“I brought plums.” Kita said as Sakusa lowered his bag to the floor. That partially explained why it was so heavy. “Perhaps that will make my being here more comfortable for him. I want to make a good impression on your dear friend.”

“My…” Sakusa said, staring down the dark hallway. “We can try to coax him out later, once you get settled in.” He sighed.

“He can take all the time he needs.”

“So, Kita-san… what brings you to Kanto?”

“Must a man need a reason to visit his friend?” Kita looked at him with his signature indecipherable gaze. “I wanted to see you, but I know you are too busy to make the trip to Hyogo. So many patrons petitioning Raijin to protect them from his storms.”

As if spoken into existence by Kita, heavy raindrops clattered against the ceramic roof tiles. “Ah, it’s not like they ever want to talk to me. I might as well not be here.”

“It is a shame they do not see you for who you really are. I suppose most people are too set in their ways. Still, I am sure they appreciate the work you put in around here. Itachiyama is truly a beautiful shrine. You should be proud.”

“That is high praise from you, Kita-san. It’s very appreciated.”

Kita stepped back out onto the veranda, the squall’s gusts whipping at his silver hair. Sakusa never figured out if it was that color naturally or if he artificially altered it somehow. 

He recalled the streak of white that snaked through his own bangs. It’d been there for as long as Sakusa could remember. His mother, before she passed away, told him it was because her midwife had been a spirit. After his delivery, the kami midwife pressed a kiss to his forehead to bless him.

Perhaps, Kita had been blessed as well. Though, Sakusa still wasn’t convinced Kita wasn’t a kami himself.

“If it brings you any comfort, it is the quality of your friendships that matter more than the quantity.”

“It does.” Sakusa sighed. Why did he need anyone else when he had Kita? When he had Tsumu?

It took several hours and for the rain to cease, but finally the fox slinked out of the darkness. Sakusa and Kita sat at the low table on the veranda, admiring the stormy purple sunset. A bowl of plums sat in a dry patch of grass, ready and waiting.

“Welcome back.” Sakusa spoke dryly, taking a sip of his sake. “Glad to see you’ve finally decided to socialize.”

“Glad ya finally decided to socialize.” Tsumu parroted in a mocking drawl as he jumped off the veranda ledge.

“He’s quite cute, don’t you think?” Kita knocked back his 5th cup of the night. Sakusa wondered for a moment if he was dumping the sake through a gap in the wood floor and not actually drinking it, because he wasn’t inebriated in the slightest.

“He’s alright.” Sakusa propped his elbows on the table. “He’s less endearing when he’s covered in mud, or when I have to pull burrs out of his fur.”

“Oh, is that so?” Kita’s eyebrows raised, a tiny indecipherable smile graced his lips. Sakusa desperately wished he knew what Kita was thinking at any given moment, but he especially did now.

Tsumu hopped back onto the veranda, leaving an empty bowl in his wake. 

Kita tentatively reached out a hand to let Tsumu sniff him. “I… guess he can pet me.”

“You don’t have to let him if you don’t want to, Tsumu.” Sakusa said. “He won’t be offended.”

Tsumu considered that for a moment, then nodded. “It’s okay.”

“Go ahead Kita-san.”

Kita ran a gentle finger over the fox’s snout and up his forehead. “Ah, he’s so soft.” Tsumu let out a tiny squeak. “The foxes that visit my shrine would never allow me to pet them, no matter how much tofu I leave them. You’re truly lucky, Sakusa.”

Sakusa leaned on his palm, eyes fixed on the two of them. “Yes… I suppose I am.”

  
  


* * *

  
  


A peaceful quiet had settled over the Itachiyama shrine. By the end of the summer, the townsfolk no longer needed to petition Raijin for rain nor protection from storms. Soft afternoon drizzles kept the crops healthy in preparation for the harvest.

Sakusa sat in the main room of the shrine, carefully folding fresh shide. Once the rainy season ended, the waterlogged ones outside would need to be replaced. 

“Hello?” A voice broke Sakusa from his peace.

A man in a simple black yukata stood in the doorway. He was a stranger, roughly Sakusa’s age, with a handsome face and heavy lidded eyes. His hair was a bizarre color, pale yellow like a winter sunrise.

“Welcome to the Itachiyama Shrine. Can I help you?” Sakusa stood up, brushing off his own yukata.

“Can I speak to the priest, please?” The man’s voice was unsteady, uncertain. Sakusa wondered if it was illness or nervousness.

“I…” Sakusa hesitated. “We don’t have a proper priest here, but I am the shrine keeper.”

“Is it possible to book a room here?”

“There’s an inn in town, back down the hill.”

“No vacancy.” Another shake in the man’s voice. It seemed unlikely the inn would be at full capacity in the middle of August.

“I… suppose you may stay here, then.” Sakusa found comfort in his slight height advantage over the stranger. He figured if this man was here to cause trouble, he could easily apprehend him. “But we don’t have rooms to rent. You will have to stay in my personal quarters.”

“Thank you.” The man bowed at the waist. “I am afraid not too many places are welcoming to someone like myself. Your kindness is appreciated.”

“Someone like yourself?” Sakusa echoed.

The man crossed the threshold of the doorway and in a single blink, he’d changed. Warm brown eyes shifted to a brilliant amber, the lids lined with black and red. Tufts of blonde hair became a pair of animal ears.

“Ah. You’re a kitsune.”

The stranger smiled with his entire face. “Tha’s it? Most folks have the decency to at least pretend to be afraid.”

Sakusa realized why the man’s voice trembled earlier.

“...Tsumu?”

He was trying to hide an accent.

The stranger's smile cracked and plummeted into a frown. Brilliant eyes faded back to a natural soft brown. "Yer too smart for ya own good, Omi-kun."

Sakusa took a step closer. Some ancient primal desire overran his logical brain and before he realized what he was doing, his hand was buried in blonde locks. Fingers found their way to the sensitive spot behind Tsumu's fox ear, earning him a tiny squeak. Sakusa's eyes drifted shut. "It's as soft as your fur."

"It's the other way 'round." Tsumu spoke. "This is my true form. The fox's fur is as soft as my hair."

Sakusa opened his eyes to observe the man before him. "Why?"

"I take good care of it, ye'see?"

"No… not that." Sakusa slowly withdrew his hand from Tsumu's hair, suddenly realizing that touching a yokai without permission was likely taboo. "Why me?"

Tsumu seized his retreating wrist, fingers tightly encircling pale skin. Curved claws left white indents where they pressed into flesh. Sakusa flinched, straining to free himself from the grip. "I could steal this hand from you." Tiny flames burned in the kitsune's eyes as he pressed the tips of his claws harder against Sakusa's skin.

Then, Tsumu's iron grip loosened, fingers trailed upwards to rest against the palm of Sakusa's hand. "I won't, though." A confident smile spread across his face. "I always like it when ya touch me."

Sakusa exhaled an uneasy breath. Gaze flickering from Tsumu's face to their hands and back again. "Why… me?" He repeated.

Tsumu hooked his thumb around Sakusa's. "It was that friend of yours. Kita." He paused, letting Sakusa process the information. "He prayed for ya nearly every day. 'Nari musta got tired of hearin' it, so they sent me to keep an eye on ya."

Tsumu smiled. A beat skipped in Sakusa's ribcage as the kitsune traced circles on his skin. "I was only s'posed to stay for a month, but I grew attached."

Sakusa pulled his hand back, the now absent touch still tingled on his skin. He cast his eyes downward, fingers clenched and unclenched. "I'm no one special."

"Ya really should listen to Kita-san more." Tsumu let out a beautiful bright laugh that echoed through the shrine room like windchimes. "He thinks yer special, and he never lies."

Sakusa felt like he was lying face down in a koi pond, the universe swirling around him and he slowly drowned. Steadying hands gripped his shoulders.

He desperately wanted to step backwards until he bumped against the shrine altar. He desperately wanted Raijin to hear his plea and pluck him into one of the paintings lining the wooden walls. He desperately wanted Tsumu, or anyone, to never touch him again.

Kita would be disappointed in him. Those flat brown eyes would pick him apart with their thousand yard stare. 

_It is a sin to tell a lie to your fellow man_ , he imagined Kita saying.

_But it is a greater sin to lie to yourself._

Sakusa allowed himself to look down at the kitsune grasping his shoulders. He wore a gentle smile, the corners of his eyes crinkling.

He desperately wanted to reach out and retwine his fingers in blonde hair.

That was his truth.

Firm arms wrapped around his shoulders as he buried his face in Tsumu's neck. Clawed fingers wound their way into black curls.

"I knew what I was this whole time, you did not." Tsumu whispered into his ear. "So, I don' 'spect ya to feel the same, but…"

He loosened his grip on Sakusa's body and gently pushed the head off his shoulder. Sakusa stared down at him wide-eyed. "I think I'm in love with ya."

Sakusa let out a breathy laugh. "Is that why you were so upset when Kita visited? You were jealous?"

A blush spread across the kitsune’s face, nearly the same shade as his eyeliner. “Have you seen him? This beauty of a priest who abs’lutely adores ya shows up on yer doorstep one day and ya don’t expect me to be jealous?”

Sakusa fully laughed. The absurdity of the entire situation had finally clicked in his brain. He couldn't remember the last time he laughed this way.

"Omi-kun!" Tsumu whined. “I just confessed m’ undyin’ feelin’s to ya and yer laughin’!”

"Right, sorry."

Sakusa wasn't sorry. 

He reached out a hand for the kitsune to take. Fingers entwined with his, the tips of Tsumu's claws resting gently against his skin.

"You're correct. I don't reciprocate your feelings, but…"

He brought his other hand to Tsumu's face. The kitsune leaned into his caress, a soft smile on his face.

A thumb traced along a cheekbone said more than any words ever could.

  
  


* * *

  
  


“Behave.” Sakusa said, adjusting the sleeves of his haori, the late November chill threatened to crawl under his clothes. He cursed himself internally for forgetting to bring along a hanten instead.

“I know.” Tsumu trotted alongside him in his fox form, unbothered by the cold.

Leaves crunched underfoot and frost clung to their breaths. “The Fox’s Wedding is very important to the Inarizaki shrine. Visitors come from all across Hyogo and beyond to the festival.” Sakusa said as they approached the compound. “It’s a great honor that Kita invited us.”

“I know.” The fox grumbled again. 

“Do you have burrs in your fur? Why’re you being such a grump?”

“I wanna go with ya, Omi-kun.”

Sakusa sighed. “You are going, idiot.”

“No.” Tsumu whined indignantly. “I wanna go with ya, as m’self.”

They began ascending the shrine compound’s steps, statues of kitsunes watching their every move. “I am sure Kita-san will ask no questions when I show up to his festival with a handsome stranger and not my loyal animal companion.” Tsumu glanced up at him, his ears flattening against his head.

“Ah, Sakusa! Tsumu!” Kita was waiting for them in the courtyard, savoring his last few minutes of peace before the festival attendees began to arrive. He was dressed in a black hakama identical to Sakusa’s, but his haori was a brilliant shade of red-orange. A carved grey fox mask was tied on the side of his face. “It is so good to see you both.”

“Likewise, Kita-san.” Sakusa bowed, though he knew Kita hated it. Even Tsumu lowered his head slightly.

Kita turned on his heel and led them to his personal quarters. A futon was set up in the main living area next to a pile of pillows. “I have a gift for you, Sakusa. Wait here.” 

He reappeared from his bedroom with a fox mask and a rolled up piece of washi paper. As Sakusa tried to untie the thread, Kita raised a hand. “I have some last minute work to do. Please make yourself at home. Take your time.” He smiled serenely before leaving.

Sakusa examined the mask. It was a black and grey painted fox with equally dark eyes. The only pops of color were streaks of burgundy above its eyes and on its cheeks. He affixed it to the side of his head. “It suits ya.” Tsumu says, sitting politely with his tail curled around his paws. 

He pulled the thread wrapped around the rolled page, revealing another calligraphic message. Kita had painted burgundy roses around the border, highlights carefully done in silver ink. _異体同心_. Below the calligraphy was a tiny portrait of a fox, its markings identical to Tsumu’s. Sakusa laughed. Kita never missed a thing.

“Wha’s’it?” Tsumu shifted into his humanoid form and leaned over Sakusa’s shoulder. He angled the paper to give him a better view. “Omi-kun, y'know I can't read that.”

Sakusa traced the individual kanji with his pointer finger as he read them out loud. “Different body, same heart.” 

“Hm?” Tsumu cocked his head. “Is tha’ a confession?”

“Yes.” Sakusa said, setting the paper down on the table. “But it wasn’t one from Kita-san.”

“Wh-” Tsumu started, quickly cut off by Sakusa’s arms pressing him into a tight hug.

“I’ve been thinking about it, since August and…” Sakusa inhaled deeply, feeling the breath and the strength fill his entire body, before exhaling. He hooked a hand beneath both sides of the kitsune’s jaw. Those amber eyes were the size of the sun. “I love you, too.”

He pulled Tsumu's face closer. The kitsune’s eyes fluttered closed. “Good.” He spoke, voice hoarse and breathless, before Sakusa met his lips. 

“Omi-kun?” Tsumu whispered after they parted, faces so close Sakusa’s eyelashes brushed against his skin.

“Yes?”

“My name is Atsumu.”

Sakusa leaned in to kiss him again.

“Kiyoomi.”

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> hope you enjoyed~!
> 
> i am incredibly nervous about this since it's my first time writing an AU. please take care of me 🙏
> 
> check out my artwork for this fic [here](https://twitter.com/andraste_/status/1248274704856686594).
> 
> check out my twitter [@andraste_](https://twitter.com/andraste_/status/1257523318376275968) for more #sakuatsuweek content. I have a little bit of somethin for every day


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